Around the League - PLAYOFFS!?

[uncleben]

lol I picked him in the Tim's hockey challenge too haha

Me too!

 

[budzz]

Connor Brown finally has a goal LMAO

Love how they threw hats on the ice for Connors first lol.

 

[Mess]

Hyman with the hat-trick tonight and now at 46 goals.

Its amazing to think that Zach Hyman is now tied for 2nd in the NHL in goals and only 8 goals behind Matthews who is having a career year goal scoring.

He is currently on pace for 59 goals on the season.

 

[Arzak]

Gritty takes blame for stolen Jagr bobbleheads | NHL.com

Someone needed trackload of Jagrs !

Too much power in one's hands.

edit: You know they must be good

 

[Stephen]

Gritty takes blame for stolen Jagr bobbleheads | NHL.com

Someone needed trackload of Jagrs !

Too much power in one's hands.

edit: You know they must be good

The Pittsburgh clown show is reaching new levels of sadness this year.

 

[rumman]

I didnt say Matthews is better than McDavid I said youre trying to sell him short because you hate that the leafs have a superstar player

Why would any Leaf fan hate they have a superstar? Your just a homer fan blinded by your love for the Leafs………

 

[DarkKnight]

Recall when people dared criticize Dubas' over payments, it was always "if anything only a few hundred thousand " here and there, nevermind a small team discount given the MASSIVE signing bonuses and FAVOURABLE terms, well there's your Zach Hyman raise. Dubas' inability to get good deals, rolled by agents, cost us a heart and soul, puck digging, gritty winger, who has now blossomed into the best value contract in the league maybe.

Still burns me he left.

 

[ToneDog]

Recall when people dared criticize Dubas' over payments, it was always "if anything only a few hundred thousand " here and there, nevermind a small team discount given the MASSIVE signing bonuses and FAVOURABLE terms, well there's your Zach Hyman raise. Dubas' inability to get good deals, rolled by agents, cost us a heart and soul, puck digging, gritty winger, who has now blossomed into the best value contract in the league maybe.

Still burns me he left.

He bled assets betting everything on his core, thinking all he needed to do was fill out the rest of the roster. Goalie? Dmen? No worries. Sorry, it is not that easy, even for a genius.

 

[ULF_55]

He bled assets betting everything on his core, thinking all he needed to do was fill out the rest of the roster. Goalie? Dmen? No worries. Sorry, it is not that easy, even for a genius.

He didn't predict the pandemic, so the gamble that the Cap would continue to increase was lost.

Funny, there was more than a couple posters on here predicting a $100mm Cap. I'm sure they're all raising their hands now saying, "Yep, that was me."

 

[DarkKnight]

He bled assets betting everything on his core, thinking all he needed to do was fill out the rest of the roster. Goalie? Dmen? No worries. Sorry, it is not that easy, even for a genius.

Other teams have great cores, they just weren't all overpaid, and we're still in that legacy cycle with this GM. Dubas wasn't voted favourite GM of agents because he's a nice guy

 

[Jmo89]

Recall when people dared criticize Dubas' over payments, it was always "if anything only a few hundred thousand " here and there, nevermind a small team discount given the MASSIVE signing bonuses and FAVOURABLE terms, well there's your Zach Hyman raise. Dubas' inability to get good deals, rolled by agents, cost us a heart and soul, puck digging, gritty winger, who has now blossomed into the best value contract in the league maybe.

Still burns me he left.

He bled assets betting everything on his core, thinking all he needed to do was fill out the rest of the roster. Goalie? Dmen? No worries. Sorry, it is not that easy, even for a genius.

Are you sure you guys just don't like him because he, looks like your daughter's boyfriend?

What a gem of a thread that was.

He didn't predict the pandemic, so the gamble that the Cap would continue to increase was lost.

Funny, there was more than a couple posters on here predicting a $100mm Cap. I'm sure they're all raising their hands now saying, "Yep, that was me."

Which is more of a reason why the Matthews, Marner, and to a lesser extent Nylander's contracts should have been 8 years like the vast majority of other RFAs signed for. The overpayments wouldn't have been so bad with proper terms.

Having Matthews at 11.5 for 3 more years would be fine. Imagine a 100-point Nylander at only 7M for another 2 seasons?

The Leafs were the only team to pay their RFAs based on the same rising cap projection twice. They were already paid based on the projections pre-covid, and then as we know the cap went stagnant. Now that their current deals are done they're getting paid on projections again but they already got their raises. Another gift Dubas left the team.

I doubt we ever see a GM handle multiple young stars' RFA contracts as poorly as Dubas did.

 

[budzz]

Recall when people dared criticize Dubas' over payments, it was always "if anything only a few hundred thousand " here and there, nevermind a small team discount given the MASSIVE signing bonuses and FAVOURABLE terms, well there's your Zach Hyman raise. Dubas' inability to get good deals, rolled by agents, cost us a heart and soul, puck digging, gritty winger, who has now blossomed into the best value contract in the league maybe.

Still burns me he left.

Well to be fair alot of people in here felt the same way about Zach... good player most of us liked, had some injury issues, but the long term deal was worrisome.

I like Zach and always have, and good for him for excelling there. He never did jack for us in the playoffs, and only seemed to explode as an Oiler (I guess playing with McJesus does that).

As for contracts, that team has similar issues... some big contracts, questionable D, questionable goal tending, and little money to fix those things. This isn't just a 'Leaf" problem.

 

[DarkKnight]

Well to be fair alot of people in here felt the same way about Zach... good player most of us liked, had some injury issues, but the long term deal was worrisome.

I like Zach and always have, and good for him for excelling there. He never did jack for us in the playoffs, and only seemed to explode as an Oiler (I guess playing with McJesus does that).

As for contracts, that team has similar issues... some big contracts, questionable D, questionable goal tending, and little money to fix those things. This isn't just a 'Leaf" problem.

He was hurt two years in the playoffs. Plus he was a 30 goal pace scorer here two years it's not like he wasn't showing signs there either. The "Leafs" have the most bloated top end in the league for what we get and have achieved.

 

[BertCorbeau]

He was hurt two years in the playoffs. Plus he was a 30 goal pace scorer here two years it's not like he wasn't showing signs there either. The "Leafs" have the most bloated top end in the league for what we get and have achieved.

 

[ULF_55]

He was hurt two years in the playoffs. Plus he was a 30 goal pace scorer here two years it's not like he wasn't showing signs there either. The "Leafs" have the most bloated top end in the league for what we get and have achieved.

Wasn't he on Matthews wing quite a bit?

I recall many questioned that, did they not?

Do we think playing on Matthews wing benefitted him?

If he was playing less than 11 minutes a night on the Leafs would we have expected him to score at the same rate?

Do Leafs have another forward who would be in a similar situation?

 

[DarkKnight]

Wasn't he on Matthews wing quite a bit?

I recall many questioned that, did they not?

Do we think playing on Matthews wing benefitted him?

If he was playing less than 11 minutes a night on the Leafs would we have expected him to score at the same rate?

Do Leafs have another forward who would be in a similar situation?

Wouldn't he be the absolute perfect fit on that line now? Or with Nylander? A guy that's literally scored 95 percent of his goals in the greasy areas, imagine him feasting on rebounds. He wouldn't play 11 minutes here? He'd be playing top 6, PK and PP no? People said he was "stone hands" when Babcock first tried him high in the lineup but he was proving those detractors wrong as we went. He was sure better than Bunting in that role.

View attachment 835798

Kind of a bs retort Bert, given it's topically in this thread the last few days.

 

[TheTotalPackage]

He didn't predict the pandemic, so the gamble that the Cap would continue to increase was lost.

Funny, there was more than a couple posters on here predicting a $100mm Cap. I'm sure they're all raising their hands now saying, "Yep, that was me."

While true, it also highlights even further how much the Tavares deal has hamstrung the team. I was all for the signing, and you certainly could never predict a pandemic, but also tying up big money contracts to four guys gives you very little wiggle room and a greater inability to get out of one of those contracts. And the Leafs have paid for it since. Not necessarily on Hyman, but many players and moves since.

 

[Leaf Rocket]

Wayyyyy delayed on this...But I was grinding my teeth and facepalming the amount of time Owen Power said "Um"...in his Overdrive Interview.

It's normal ofc for some people but I swear that man says at least 3x times more than usual

 

[ULF_55]

While true, it also highlights even further how much the Tavares deal has hamstrung the team. I was all for the signing, and you certainly could never predict a pandemic, but also tying up big money contracts to four guys gives you very little wiggle room and a greater inability to get out of one of those contracts. And the Leafs have paid for it since. Not necessarily on Hyman, but many players and moves since.

There is one huge fallacy that continues to this day.

There weren't four guys ... there were 3.
Matthews, Tavares, marner

Then there were
Rielly and Nylander.

 

[ULF_55]

Wouldn't he be the absolute perfect fit on that line now? Or with Nylander? A guy that's literally scored 95 percent of his goals in the greasy areas, imagine him feasting on rebounds. He wouldn't play 11 minutes here? He'd be playing top 6, PK and PP no? People said he was "stone hands" when Babcock first tried him high in the lineup but he was proving those detractors wrong as we went. He was sure better than Bunting in that role.

I think Bobby McMann would be better than Bunting in that role today.

 

[DarkKnight]

I think Bobby McMann would be better than Bunting in that role today.

Agreed.

 

[Kurtz]

While true, it also highlights even further how much the Tavares deal has hamstrung the team. I was all for the signing, and you certainly could never predict a pandemic, but also tying up big money contracts to four guys gives you very little wiggle room and a greater inability to get out of one of those contracts. And the Leafs have paid for it since. Not necessarily on Hyman, but many players and moves since.

I don't really see it that way. We had more than enough room to bring back Hyman at $5.5; all Kyle would have to do was dump Kerfoot's salary and not sign Mrazek to a $4mil deal same off-season.

I think they just made a reasonable calculation that a power forward with a history of serious injuries would not age well into his 30s. Most guys of that type don't...Zach has defied the odds on that front.

 

[TheTotalPackage]

I don't really see it that way. We had more than enough room to bring back Hyman at $5.5; all Kyle would have to do was dump Kerfoot's salary and not sign Mrazek to a $4mil deal same off-season.

I think they just made a reasonable calculation that a power forward with a history of serious injuries would not age well into his 30s. Most guys of that type don't...Zach has defied the odds on that front.

I completely agree that they could have brought Hyman back with a few moves. I said as such a few pages back. I get why they didn't give him what he was seeking, but I also think Dubas didn't care to get creative to fit him in.

 

[tmlms13]

View attachment 835685

Its amazing to think that Zach Hyman is now tied for 2nd in the NHL in goals and only 8 goals behind Matthews who is having a career year goal scoring.

He is currently on pace for 59 goals on the season.

What's more amazing is Matthews is on probably his biggest cold streak of the year..... 2 goals in last 8 games..... and still has an 8 goal lead in the Richard race.

 

[Fogelhund]

I think Bobby McMann would be better than Bunting in that role today.

Well, at least he's signed, and now they can try it, without worrying about him getting hot, and pricing himself out. I would be surprised if they didn't try it.